Miranda stopped the car in front of the entrance to the mansion. Immediately as we pulled up, the mansion’s door opened and two butlers and men in black suits and glasses exited the house. They walked up to the car with a confident stride in their steps that could only be accomplished through yearly repetition.

“Out.” Miranda ordered. “We’re going in.” 

I open the car door and step outside. Karina slides off my shoulder and face plants onto the seat, but she’s so drunk that instead of waking up and complaining, she giggles and continues snoring. If only I could have such low brain capacity. Life would be so much simpler. 

Suddenly, I’m pushed out of the way and a butler moves past me, grabbing Karina by her shoulders and dragging her out of the car. The other butler goes on the other side and props Karina on their shoulder. With her sandwiched between them, they took her inside while Miranda followed. So did I have to do anything or not?

I step behind Miranda and follow her inside the mansion. Once I’m in, the air leaves my lungs as I take in the size of the place. The ceiling towered above me and it was painted in a dizzying pattern that made it hard to look up for a long period of time. I had to squint my eyes, otherwise I’d end up with an infuriating headache. One thing that struck a nervous cord in me was how two spots in the paint job looked like a pair of eyes staring at me.

“You coming?” Miranda called out to me. 

She stood on a set of stairs leading up to the second floor. I heard footsteps beside me, and I turned to see the two men in suits standing next to me. They looked at me with the sole intent of making sure I’m not getting into any trouble, and it may be their job, but it was straight up creepy.

“Coming.” I whisper.

I follow her up the stairs as the butlers carrying Karina entered the left hallway. I quicken my pace to close the distance as the butlers stop at the second door we come across. They open the door and head inside. 

I enter the room with Miranda beside me and I look around the room that Karina sleeps in every single night. It wasn’t the image of how a rich person would keep their room, but it definitely fit Karina. Trash and clothes were thrown about everywhere. There was a weird smell in the room and the only source of light came from a small lamp sitting on the table beside her queen-size bed. Actually, maybe it is a rich person’s room.

The butlers lay Karina down on her bed and cover a blanket over her body. With efficiency, they effortlessly tuck the cover in nice and tight to the point where it looked like the cover was keeping her trapped in bed. I could see the outline of her body along the blanket as they worked. 

The butlers finished their work and left the room, closing the door behind them. I could hear the security guards outside as I heard the door lock. Miranda didn’t move a muscle as the whole event occurred, which only served to confuse me even more. I was tempted to ask what was happening, but I didn’t know how to phrase it without sounding either scared out of my mind or angry, so I kept my mouth shut.

“You probably want to know what’s happening.” Miranda said. 

I nod my head. Thank god she’s the one that asked me that. “Can you tell me what the hell is happening?”

“Well, to put it the most blunt way I can think of, Karina’s a bad drunk and her passing out is the first step to calming her down.”

All of a sudden, I could feel an aura of evil waft out from the covers of the bed. The warm air of the room froze below zero as I heard the bed squeak and churn from the squirming creature trapped in its blankets. The creature moaned and groaned like a bear waking from hibernation and then immediately hunting for prey after not eating for months on end. 

“We have to keep her in bed. No matter how loud or desperate her screams get, keep her down.”

I’m confused as all hell and shaking in my boots, but I do as Miranda says. Miranda stands at Karina’s left and I’m to her right. We each plant our hand above the blanket where her arms are located. I could feel her trying to tear out of her confines and free herself from whatever’s troubling her. Whatever that thing is, I don’t think I could handle it if it’s affecting her this hard. She’s tossing and turning, groaning in pain, and tears are dripping down her cheek. 

She put up a good fight, grabbing and squeezing my arm, trying to get me to relax my grasp, and it nearly worked too. I let my hands unfold slightly to not hurt her as much, but Miranda grabbed my hand and squeezed it shut. She didn’t want me to let go, and the look of desperation on her face told me all I needed to know. Gritting my teeth, I swallow the guilt, and squeeze harder. Karina reluctantly lets go of me, but she’s still not out for the count. 

Her groans grew louder the longer she wrestled with the blankets and our hands. After a whole minute of this passed, it turned into the screams of a madwoman that wanted nothing more than to be let free from the hellish prison she’s encased within. They were the screams of a dying animal as they’re bleeding from their neck while a predator was eating them alive. It was so raw and real that it made my stomach churn and my arms weak. If it weren’t for the fear of what she would do if let loose, whatever that thing may be, it wasn’t worth the risk. The look on Miranda’s face is clarification enough.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Karina whispered through her tears and screams.

What happened to her? What happened to that smile that was so prevalent throughout the entire day? What turned such a chatty, energetic, and bright person into this sniveling mess? WHAT HAPPENED!

My chest filled with so much rage and sadness at the universe. Why is this even allowed in a world where children are birthed into it with no knowledge of what they’re getting into? Children should be born into a world where they can grow up happy without worrying about life’s problems. That way, they can grow up to be well-meaning and responsible people. But look at this? Tell me now that she grew up okay when she’s sobbing in a drunken rage, apologizing to a phantom in the room. 

It took nearly five entire minutes, but she calmed down and began breathing correctly again. With one calm, deep sleeping breath right after the next, her arms relaxed and sleep finally worked its way into her system. By the end, my wrist and arms were scratched to all hell, some even drawing blood. How she managed to do that through the blanket, I don’t know, but the gashes in the sheet were proof that she managed.

I took my arms off her and looked at the sleeping figure on the bed. She looked so calm, so tranquil, that I wouldn’t have expected that she’d have done so much damage and experienced so much sorrow the moment prior. Then I saw the tears roll down her cheeks, and there was no smile left on my face. It vanished like the children’s laughter after we left the park.

“Thanks for that.” Miranda said. 

I looked at her as she winced as she rubbed a scratch on her arm. The expression on her face pained me, because she looked so used to doing this I could only imagine how long this had been going on. That knowledge angered me as much as the universe does, and that’s a hard thing to accomplish.

“You’re her friend, right?” I ask. Miranda nodded. “You’re her best friend? Someone who cares for her the most out of anyone, even her family?” 

“Yes.” Miranda said, but not loud enough to sound confident.

“Then why?”

Miranda kept her mouth closed for a few seconds. I was so close to unleashing all my pent up anger at her, but she spoke just before I could. 

“You haven’t been around her as long as I have. Trust me when I say that it’s better for her to drink. You don’t want to know what happens when she actually stops talking and thinks.”

That’s her excuse? What could be worse than whatever the fuck this shit is? There’s no way that the alternative is worse than her screaming bloody murder in tears at whatever was going on in her head. There’s just no universe where that is even a minute possibility. 

“How is being sober worse?” I ask, barely holding back my anger. “There’s no way that’s true.”

I expected her to lash back at me and say something shocking that would change my mind. I expected her to lash back at me and say something that would only make me even more angry. I expected her to do literally anything. Instead, she did nothing. She could only look at her friend’s chest move up and down in the rhythm of her breathing. She is alive, but not at the same time.

***

The iron gates open and Miranda drives back into the road. Harmony and Jessica are discussing something, and it looked to be a pretty serious conversation. Meanwhile, I’m sitting in the backseat, staring out the window as we pass by the fountain shooting water into the air. If I wasn’t in such a downer mood, I’d probably love to see it, but that’s not how that works.

Miranda stops and waits for Jessica and Harmony to step into the car. Jessica is the first to step in, taking the passenger seat while Harmony gets the other side of the backseat. The middle is left empty and I can feel the remnants of someone that should be here. 

“How was it?” Jessica asks as she closes the car door. 

“Fine.” Miranda says. “Enjoy being outside.” 

Jessica glanced at Harmony out of the corner of her eye then stared straight ahead. She thinks she’s slick with that, but I caught it with my own two eyes.

“It was good. Harmony and I had a bit of a chat.” Jessica turned to Harmony, who was busy looking out the window. “Right?”

“Sure.” Harmony shrugged her shoulders. 

Miranda began driving again and the car was eerily silent on the way home. The only noise constant through the ride is the engine and the wheels rolling against the road. Houses passed by quickly as the million dollar mansions disappeared, replaced with the broken down homes of the poor. The change happened so suddenly that I couldn’t even point out when it happened. It just did.

***

Miranda pulled up to our driveway and the white porch of my home came into view. It’s only been a few hours since I left home, but it feels like years had passed. I’ve had a few laughs, some cry’s, but mostly disappointment and sadness. It really is gaining ground. 

Harmony opened her car door and climbed out while I stretched my back. I could hear and feel a pop and immediate relief washed over me. I climb out as Miranda and Jessica say goodnight, then drives off to who knows where. Maybe they’ll figure out they’re lesbians and bone in the back room of the antique shop. That’ll cheer up my mood. 

I climb up the porch and reach for the keys in my pocket. Harmony is staring off into the stars and the light reflects off the hearts of her eyes. I nearly got sucked right back into that trap, but managed to gain enough self-control to look away. I take a deep breath and turn the doorknob. I locked it on the way out, but my parents beat it into me to always check doors to see if they were locked first. Apparently, someone broke into their home when I was a kid and the burglar was still inside. One thing led to another, and Dad was in the hospital with the burglar in the bed beside him.

I always thought it was crazy, but it became a habit after years of turning the doorknob before I enter. I expected it to be locked like always, but when I turned it, there was no stop to the swivel. It made the full rotation, and the door opened without issue. My heart began beating as the door creaked open and I was greeted by the darkness of my living room. This time, the moon didn’t shine through the window, so it was pitch black in there.

I turn to Harmony and she looks at me, confused by the worried look on my face. I put my finger on my lips, mouthing for her to be quiet. She took the hint, but instead of doing as I said, her eyes hardened and she ran into the house. I shout, expecting to hear gunfire. I close my eyes and wait. 

Nothing came. Hah. 

I open my eyes and see that Harmony had turned on the lights to the living room. She’s looking around the room for anything that could have been stolen and I head in as well. I look around, but find myself surprised to see nothing is missing, and in fact, it looks even neater and clean then before. The stains on the floor from when my semen dripped out of Harmony were completely erased. It’s like it was never there to begin with.

Harmony and I look at one another, and we make our way to our bedrooms. As I enter the hallway, I immediately stop and stare in shock at what I’m seeing. There wasn’t a door for my bedroom when we left. I’d know if there was, since I’d know if I bought and installed a new door. But what I’m seeing with my own two eyes is a fresh door installed that perfectly fits the frame. 

Harmony walks forward, and if she didn’t do it, that means I would have to and that terrified me. She walked up to the door and opened it as slowly as possible. She peeked in the crack of the door. Nothing happens, and she opens it further. Soon, the door was wide open, and no trap was sprung, even when the knob hit the wall.

Feeling a bit better, I walk to my bedroom and look inside. My room is completely clean, unlike how it was when I went out. Before, clothes were flung willy-nilly on the floor, but everything was picked up and placed inside a hamper that I know I never had. My anime figurines and games are exactly where I left them, and my computer has been dusted and wiped clean. Out of everything in my room, nothing was taken except for one thing.

The flowers that were under my desk had been taken.